Westchester Institute for Human
Development

For 40 years WIHD has been in Valhalla creating better
futures for people with disabilities, for vulnerable children, and for their
families and caregivers. Over the years the emphasis of the Institute has
expanded and changed, however, the mission has not. WIHD continues to provide
quality health care and related services to people with disabilities, support
and training for vulnerable children and their families, graduate and
postgraduate training, technical assistance, community support and research.

The legacy of the Institute predates its 40 years in
Valhalla. Formerly known as the Mental Retardation Institute, WIHD was founded
in 1950 at New York Medical College (Flower-Fifth Avenue Hospital) in New York
City. With start-up funding from the newly formed National Association for
Retarded Children, the Institute initially served as a diagnostic and
evaluation clinic for children, who at the time were considered to be affected
with mental retardation. It was one of the first outpatient
services in the country concerned exclusively with this diagnosis.

In 1957, the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene
funded a multidisciplinary postgraduate training program, which led to
considerable expansion of WIHDs staff, faculty and services. In 1963
Congress passed national legislation to support the creation of University
Affiliated Programs to focus on what was labeled at the time as mental
retardation. WIHD was named one of the first 18 programs. The Institute
was also successful in securing a federal grant for the construction of a new
teaching facility to provide interdisciplinary training, exemplary services,
technical assistance and research. In the late 1960s, New York Medical College
affiliated with Westchester County Medical Center in Valhalla, NY.

By 1972, WIHD had moved its Programs into the new
building, constructed with the federal grant, on the Valhalla campus. This was
the foundation of todays WIHD Programs. In the early 1980s
WIHDs programs were transferred from the College to the Westchester
Medical Center and the WIHD school was transferred to a community agency,
School for Special Children.

In 1987, WIHD formed a partnership with the Westchester
County Department of Special Services to create a Child Welfare Program based
at the Institute. In the same year WIHDs inpatient unit was closed. In
the early 1990s WIHD launched a special training initiative on Positive
Behavioral Supports and in November of 1994, the Institute formally changed
its name from the Mental Retardation Institute to Westchester Institute
for Human Development (WIHD).

In 2005, the New York Medical College established the
Center on Disability and Health in the School of Health Sciences and Practice,
and named WIHDs President and CEO, Ansley Bacon, PhD as Director. In July
of that year WIHD separated from the Westchester Medical Center becoming an
independent non-profit organization. Three years later in 2008, WIHDs
Childrens Advocacy Center received full accreditation by the National
Childrens Alliance. In 2010, WIHD received national recognition by the
Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) for its work promoting
family and self-advocate partnerships in all its activities.

Westchester Institute for
Human Development is a leader in addressing major social and health issues
affecting people with disabilities and vulnerable children. WIHD addresses
major social and health issues by developing and delivering medical, clinical
and support services to individuals, their families and caregivers. As one of
only 67 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, WIHD
creates better futures for these individuals through the creation and
dissemination of innovative research, professional leadership education and
best practices trainings. WIHD provides nearly 50 programs and services to
families and professionals throughout Westchester County and the Lower Hudson
Valley.